


hold me carefully

by onyxaltair



Category: Skulduggery Pleasant - Derek Landy
Genre: F/M, Other, derek landy, post tdotl, this is mostly valdug tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-09
Updated: 2016-05-09
Packaged: 2018-06-07 09:14:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6798004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onyxaltair/pseuds/onyxaltair
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>valkyrie and skulduggery try to figure out some problems from valkyries five year leave</p><p>--</p><p>He still hadn’t spoken more than a simple ‘Good morning’ when he had picked her up from Gordon’s this morning. She wanted to ask him why, but she had a feeling she already knew why. <em>You packed up and left with barely a goodbye</em>, she thought. <em>You left after you told him you loved him.</em></p>
            </blockquote>





	hold me carefully

Valkyrie had been in Ireland for less than four days before her and Skulduggery were called in for a case. Valkyrie could hear China before she saw her, her high heels rhythmically clicking on the white marble flooring the hallway outside. The doors flung open, and China walked in to one of the many conference rooms in the new part of the sanctuary, with her Grand Mage robe flowing behind her.  
“It's nice to see you again, Valkyrie.” China said, sitting down at the far end of the table. Valkyrie gave a curt nod and smile in return.  
“Just a small case to get you back into it. A miss Kai Bantrex, an elemental, has escaped custody after being caught for attempted murder. She murdered a Cleaver before she got away.” China brandished a folder from behind her, and slid it towards Skulduggery, who continued to stay silent and unmoving. Valkyrie focused back on China.  
“That’s all we have.” China said. “Preferably catch her within the week. Good luck, detectives.”

Valkyrie looked over at Skulduggery, who had his hat pulled over his eye sockets and his scarf over his teeth. He still hadn’t spoken more than a simple ‘Good morning’ when he had picked her up from Gordon’s this morning. She wanted to ask him why, but she had a feeling she already knew why. _You packed up and left with barely a goodbye_ , she thought. _You left after you told him you loved him._  
“Where do you think she is?” Valkyrie asked, looking back onto the road.  
“We’re going to check the town where she was seen last. It would be hard to loose a 6-foot girl with bright pink hair.”

They arrived at a small town a few hours north of Roarhaven, and stopped at a few of the stores asking about Kai. After a half hour of searching they stopped at a hairdressers, which had a single client at a chair in the back of the room, with foils in their hair.  
“Hello, I am Inspector Me,” Skulduggery started, pulling his hat back slightly. He didn’t even introduce her like usual. “Have you seen any pink haired girls in town lately?”  
“Did they do something bad?” The hairdresser asked, eyes flicking between the two. Skulduggery nodded and came up with some kind of cover story which Valkyrie payed no attention to, focusing on the client in the back. The girl had a small nose and pouty lips, and whenever she’d glance up, Valkyrie would get a glimpse of sky blue eyes.  
Valkyrie looked back at the hairdresser, who looked alarmed at what Skulduggery said. The hairdresser pointed over at the girl in the chair. “She had pink hair. I can wash out the peroxide, and you can see if that’s who you're looking for?”  
Skulduggery nodded and stood in front of the door with his arms crossed, and Valkyrie followed, but put her arms by her sides.

When the hairdresser was finished, the girl sat up and Valkyrie recognised her as the girl from the file when she looked at her straight on.  
Kai Bantrex stood up, and pulled her newly white blonde hair over her shoulder. She was wearing ridiculously skinny jeans, and shrugged on a blue leather jacket. Kai stood up and saw Valkyrie and Skulduggery by the door and blanched. She realised there was no way to escape this time, and Valkyrie ushered for her to pay, waited for her to finish the transaction before she walked over and cuffed her.  
“Kai Bantrex, you are under arrest for attempted murder, murder and escape from police custody.” Valkyrie said, and Kai whined. Valkyrie looked over at Skulduggery for some kind of approval, but he was already out the door. Valkyrie thanked the hairdresser and walked herself and Kai to the Bentley.

Valkyrie looked at Kai in the rearview mirror, who had fallen asleep against the window. Usually this would upset Skulduggery, who would kick up a fuss about them making a mark on the window, but today he sat silently.  
“She was a bit easy to catch, considering she managed to kill a Cleaver.” Valkyrie tried.  
Skulduggery barely nodded in response. Valkyrie sighed, and took to staring back down the window.

At some point Valkyrie asked in she could be dropped off at Gordon’s, and Skulduggery said nothing as he pulled up at the bottom of the driveway, leaving her to walk all the way to the top herself, in the dark.  
When she unlocked the door she was greeted by silence, as she had asked her parents to look after Xena when Valkyrie wasn’t home. She thought it might be nice for Alice to have some other kind of sane company in the house.  
Valkyrie walked into the kitchen, and made herself some cereal for dinner, and sat down at the counter. She checked for a good night message or a call from Skulduggery, but nothing appeared. She couldn’t stay like this. She had to say something.

  
~~

  
Valkyries fist hovered over Skulduggery’s door the next afternoon, clenched so hard her knuckles turned white. She had been standing there for a few minutes, and she knew that he knew she was there, but she could barely bring herself to knock.  
She closed her eyes for a second, mustering the will to go through with her decision. She brought her hand down once, and Skulduggery answered almost immediately. He opened the door and peered down at her. “Oh Valkyrie, come in.”  
“No. Skulduggery, I cant- I need to talk to you.”  
Skulduggery’s head tilted, but he didn’t say anything. No witty remark, no jab at her. Silence.  
Valkyrie sighed. “We cant work together anymore.”  
“Whats gotten into you? Whats wrong?”  
“This doesn’t feel right anymore!” Valkyrie shouted. She felt hot tears stream down her face, and promptly looked down at her feet. She couldn’t look at Skulduggery while she cried.“It doesn’t feel like us! We’ve lost it! You don’t make fun of me anymore, you don’t talk as much anymore…” She inhaled, and wiped the tears away from her eyes. “And I left. I left for five years and I ruined what we had and i’m sorry but I- I cant.”  
There was a silence, and Valkyrie took that as a sign to leave. She turned to leave, but Skulduggery grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her around.  
“Don’t say that. Don’t you remember what we said? _Until the end_. I’m not breaking that promise any time soon.”  
Valkyrie glanced down again, but Skulduggery put two gloved fingers under her chin, and pulled her face up to look at him. “Skulduggery, I-“  
He shushed her and pulled her close, with her head on his sternum, and his skull resting on her head. “I know you left.” He said. “But you needed to. It’s a lot to take in. I know what its like, and I shouldn’t have been so cold to you. It’s my fault.”  
When they pulled apart, he tapped his collarbones and a façade flowed up over his skull, and he place a delicate kiss on her forehead. “I’m sorry Valkyrie.”  
Despite herself, she laughed.

Half an hour and cup of hot tea later, Valkyrie sat cross-legged and huddled next to Skulduggery on a couch in one of his living rooms.  
“If you don’t mind me asking, why did you disappear?” Skulduggery asked.  
“After the whole thing with Darquesse, and then what happened at the Accelerator, I couldn’t stay here any more. I needed to clear my head.”  
She felt him tilt his head. “Oh is this about…?” She nodded. “Why is that a big deal? You used to tell me you loved me all the time?”  
“Because I used to say it as I love you like a friend and mentor. At the Accelerator, I meant is as…” She trailed off, unsure of what to say.  
“Oh.”  
“Yeah. It was dumb.”  
“So you don’t love me like that?”  
She pulled away from him, and moved over slightly. “I- I don’t know if I want to answer that.”  
“So you do.”  
Valkyrie scowled and crossed her arms. “Drop it.”  
“You love me.”  
“I said drop it.”

A few moments later, Skulduggery looked over at Valkyrie, who was still scowling.  
“You’re cute when you scowl”  
“Are you teasing me?”  
Skulduggery shuffled closer to her, closing the gap between them. “When have I ever _not_ been serious about your beauty.”  
“Quite a few times, actually.” Valkyrie said, turning to look at him.  
“Ah, fair point. This time however, I am very,” Skulduggery leant closer to her face. “Very, serious.”  
Valkyrie suddenly felt nervous. She knew there was always a part of her that wanted to be closer to Skulduggery, but she never thought he may feel the same way.  
She ran her hands over his shirt, feeling his cold ribcage underneath. She brushed her fingers over his collarbones, and a fresh face flowed up over his skull. Skulduggery’s new eyelids fluttered closed, and Valkyrie did the same. She leant in and met his cold lips with her own. His gloved hands found her waist, and her hands travelled from his collarbones, and crossed them over his shoulders. Valkyrie leant back against the armrest, and Skulduggery followed, moving his arms to either side of her to support him, still kissing her.

When Valkyrie pulled away for a breath, when there was a knock on the door.  
He leant forward to continue, but Valkyrie frowned pointed towards the door. He begrudgingly got up and walked over to it. Valkyrie watched as he flung it open, and it was Tanith who stood there.  
“Hey. Is Valkyrie here? She’s not at her parents or her house and she’s not picking up her phone so I assumed…”  
Valkyrie suddenly remembered her catch up she had planned to do with Tanith today and groaned. Tanith looked around Skulduggery to see where the groan had come from and saw her.  
“Oh hey Val! You ready to go?”  
Skulduggery looked to Valkyrie then back at Tanith. “She’s busy.” He said before shutting the door in Tanith’s face.  
“You can’t do that!” Tanith shouted through the door.  
Skulduggery shrugged. “Just did”  
Valkyrie sat in shock as Skulduggery walked back over and sat how he was sitting before, hovering over her. He leant in again and Valkyrie reflexively shut her eyes, but instead of his fake lips meeting her own, his skull slammed into her nose, making them both jerk back in surprise.  
“Oh my god.” Valkyrie said, clutching her nose.  
Skulduggery jumped up, stunned.  
“You broke my nose.”  
She pulled her hand away, and blood dripped down her face and covered her hand. She fished around in her pockets with her clean hand, finding a tissue and bringing it to her nose.  
“I don’t suppose we can stay here, can we?” Skulduggery asked, picking up a hat from the edge of the couch and placing it on his head.  
Valkyrie glared and he slumped. She opened the door with her spare hand and walked outside, Skulduggery close behind. She looked out and saw Tanith down the driveway, who had turned to see what the commotion was about.  
“What happened?” She asked, running up to Valkyrie.  
Valkyrie looked away, and Skulduggery grabbed her clean hand and pulled her towards the Bentley.  
“Did you guys… Oh my god.”  
Valkyrie looked back at Tanith, who had put two and two together and had collapsed on the pavement in fits of laughter.


End file.
